Category: CANA News

Prime Minister Phillip J. Pierre has acknowledged the progress made between St. Lucia and the French countries even as he said challenges remain in certain areas.

Pierre, addressing the two-day ninth Franco-St. Lucia Joint Security Commission meeting that ends here later on Wednesday, said that since the last meeting, while there had been progress in various areas of cooperation, there are persistent obstacles.

‘Since our last meeting, Franco-Saint Lucia cooperation has advanced in several areas of practical cooperation, training and border control. However, challenges remain in communications, deportations and disaster response.’

Prime Minister Phillip J Pierre (second from left) attending the ninth Franco-Saint Lucia Joint Security Commission meeting in St. Lucia.

Pierre made reference to the death of K-9 Tyson, the police dog that had been instrumental in anti-narcotics missions across the island.

In July, police said they had launched a criminal investigation into the suspicious death of the highly trained police dog whose work in narcotics and weapons recovery played a critical role in national security operations.

Assistant Commissioner of Police, Mashama Sealy, said then that a post-mortem examination had been conducted, and investigators are pursuing multiple lines of inquiry, including examination of operational environments, forensic testing, interviews and a comprehensive review of recent K-9 deployments.

Media reports said that the dog, which had been donated by the French government had ingested a poisonous substance.

French Ambassador to St. Lucia, Francis Etienne, said his government had given St. Lucia law enforcement authorities a dog 10 years ago and that it had met a similar fate as Tyson.

He said he was now calling for increased protection for the only other canine within the police service and that this incident should be taken as a warning signal.

‘The demise of Tyson has weakened St. Lucia’s interdiction capacity despite the fact that another K-9, Voyou, donated earlier this year, is providing some valuable support,’ Pierre told the meeting.

‘We are heartened by the possibility of our French friends donating another K-9 or two to us and we await its arrival while the police continue to investigate fully the cause of Tyson’s death,’ he said, as he appealed for stronger resolve against organised criminal networks. ‘Let us strengthen our resolve to use all legal methods to rid our countries of the criminal elements that threaten our security and peace.’

The meeting here has brought together senior officials from St. Lucia and France’s overseas territories for discussions on border control and security cooperation.

Martinique Prefect, Etienne Desplanques, Attorney General of the Court of Appeal of Martinique, Patrice Camberou are among those attending the meeting that has so far focused on security and trafficking, as well as operational cooperation including technical equipment, and mutual support initiatives.

Discussions involved the review of radar surveillance systems, border protection measures, and challenges in deportation and immigration procedures. The authorities are also expected to discuss improving coordination between the borders, particularly in preventing ‘undesirable St. Lucians’ re-entry to Martinique and facilitating the handover of deportees wanted by St. Lucian police.

Attorney General Leslie Mondesir said the meeting builds on the last Commission meeting held in Martinique in December 2022.

‘At that meeting a strategic action plan was developed, including training, joint operational actions, provision of technical equipment, judicial cooperation, immigration and the formation of a restricted monitoring committee. This meeting here today further expands that prior discussion,’ he said.

The fiscal debt specialist at the St. Kitts-based Eastern Caribbean Central Bank (ECCB), Juletta Edinborough, says more than 500 people have shown interest in purchasing retail bonds after the Grenada government announced last Monday that it would be auctioning five million EC dollars (One EC dollar=US$0.37 cents.

Speaking at the launch of Financial Information Month, an annual initiative of the ECCB, Edinborough said that hundreds of people have shown interest within the first eight days of the announcement.

Juletta Edinborough

‘As of today, they have already seen interest from persons, about 500 individuals have already indicated,’ she said.

‘Remember, I said earlier that for the 23 years of the market existence only 600 persons across the eight countries have invested in the market and we are already seeing interest, in the case of Grenada’s bond of 500,’ she said.

Financial Information Month is being observed under the theme ‘Financial Investing: from savers to investors’.

Late ast month, Finance Minister Dennis Cornwall said that the retail bond being auctioned would not be made available to institutions but for ordinary Grenadians.

‘This initiative provides a safe, tax-free investment backed by the full faith and credit of the Government of Grenada. It’s a practical step toward making wealth-building accessible to all,’ Cornwall said.

Grenada’s Retail Bond Programme is aimed at raising the five million dollars with a minimum investment of EC$500, which is significantly lower than the traditional EC$5,000 threshold for first time and small-scale investors.

The Ministry of Finance said that the key features of the retail bond include a two-year investment term; tax-free returns; accessibility for first-time and small-scale investors.

‘The initiative highlights the government’s broader vision of inclusive economic growth, citizen empowerment, and fostering a culture of financial responsibility among Grenadians,’ the Finance Ministry added.

The United Nations Wednesday urged the international community to fund a new UN Support Office in Haiti, less than 24 hours after the Security Council adopted a resolution authorising the transition of the Kenya-led Multinational Security Support (MSS) mission to a Gang Suppression Force (GSF) in the French-speaking Caribbean Community (CARICOM) country.

It said that the new office in Port au Prince, to be known by its UNSOH, is meant to provide logistical and operational support to the GSF.

‘Establishing a UN Support Office funded by peacekeeping-assessed contributions was initially recommended by the Secretary-General Antonio Guterres back in February, as you will recall,’ said Stéphane Dujarric, the spokesperson for the Secretary-General.

‘We urge member states to support the Gang Suppression Force, including through scaled-up voluntary contributions and the provision of uniformed personnel. All of this to help overcome the challenges that have constrained the Multinational Security Support mission,’ Dujarric told the daily UN briefing.

‘In this regard, we welcome the establishment of a Standing Group of Partners for the Gang Suppression Force by member states to provide high-level strategic direction, oversight, and relevant political decision-making for the new force. This was also among the Secretary-General’s recommendations back in February.’

Dujarric said that the UN is calling on Haitian stakeholders to build on this momentum by accelerating efforts to complete the political transition, adding that the head of the political office in Haiti, Carlos Ruiz Massieu, continues to support Haitian actors on that path.

‘The UN Political Mission in Haiti’s prevention and good offices work remains now more relevant than ever,’ Dujarric said, updating reporters also on what he described as ‘the horrific situation regarding gender-based violence’.

He said that the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) is warning that these atrocities continue at alarming levels in Haiti.

According to the UN spokesman, between January and August of this year, ‘our humanitarian partners reported more than 6,450 incidents, nearly half of those cases being rape. One in seven of these survivors is a girl under 18.

‘According to our partners armed groups were reportedly responsible for 75 per cent of the cases. Displaced people account for 70 per cent of the survivors,’ Dujarric said, noting that only a quarter of rape survivors were able to access medical care within the critical 72-hour window, while another quarter received treatment only after more than one month.

‘These delays are driven by insecurity, stigma, weak referral systems and the absence of health services in so many communities in Haiti,’ he said, adding that the vast majority of incidents were concentrated in the West Department, with the capital, Port-au-Prince, alone accounting for more than 30 per cent of cases.

‘We and our partners have been providing life-saving services, including medical and psychosocial support, legal assistance and temporary shelter. However, OCHA reports that access to services remains uneven, with most of these problems concentrated in Port-au-Prince and the surrounding communes.

‘OCHA warns that chronic underfunding is compounding the crisis and leaving the vast majority of survivors without care. Less than 20 per cent of the US$19 million required this year for gender-based violence prevention and response in Haiti has been received so far,’ Dujarric said.

He said urgent support is needed to extend services beyond the capital, Port-au-Prince, and ensure that women and girls across the country can access protection and care.

Both the West Indies men’s and women’s senior teams will be busy at home in 2026 as Cricket West Indies (CWI) on Wednesday revealed packed home series for both teams.

Speaking during CWI’s quarterly press conference, Director of Cricket, Miles Bascombe announced that the men will be hosting Sri Lanka, New Zealand and Pakistan.

‘We start the home series for the men with Sri Lanka and a full tour of all three formats: three ODIs, three T20s, and two Test matches.

West Indies Women will play a historic Test match against Australia at home in 2026

‘Then we move on to New Zealand which is a white-ball series of three ODIs and three T20 internationals, and then Pakistan, which is a Test series consisting of two Test matches,’ Bascombe revealed.

He said among the West Indies Women’s matches at home was a historic Test match against Australia Women.

‘The women will have Sri Lanka for six white ball matches: three ODIs and three T20Is.

‘They will also have Australia for a full format series including one Test match and we finish the year with Pakistan, which is a white ball series with three ODIs and three T20Is,’ Bascombe said.

The Guyana government Wednesday welcomed the United States Department of State 2025 Trafficking in Persons Report that placed the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) country in Tier 1 as a result of the government fully meeting the Trafficking Victims Protection Act’s (TVPA) minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking.

‘Guyana continues to demonstrate serious and sustained efforts to combat Trafficking in Persons,’ said Home Affairs Minister, Oneidge Walrond, describing the Tier 1 ranking as evidence of the country’s ‘unwavering dedication and effective action in fighting human trafficking’.

Home Affairs Minister, Oneidge Walrond

She said that Guyana remains steadfast in its commitment to eradicating human trafficking within its borders and across the wider region.

She said that this commitment is amplified by the tireless efforts of members of the Ministerial Taskforce on Trafficking in Persons, non-governmental organizations, civil society stakeholders, and other partners.

‘Our comprehensive approach includes safeguarding vulnerable populations, increasing training and awareness, intensifying spot inspections and anti-trafficking operations, and through the Ministry of Human Services and Social Security, providing robust support and protection to victims and survivors, pursuing relentless prosecution of offenders, and fostering strong partnerships both locally and internationally,’ Walrond said.

The government said that the Tier 1 placement marks the ninth consecutive year that Guyana has demonstrated serious and sustained efforts to combat this insidious crime.

The US report also highlights several notable advancements in Guyana’s anti-trafficking framework, including an increased prosecution rate, the successful conviction of a sex trafficker with an ordered restitution payment, and enhanced collaboration with foreign governments to investigate trafficking cases effectively and increasing funding for the protection and prevention efforts.

It further outlines 12 critical recommendations for Guyana to continue strengthening its anti-trafficking efforts.

These include increasing prosecutions and convictions, especially in cases involving child victims; eliminating recruitment fees charged to workers; expanding labour and spot inspections in sectors vulnerable to trafficking such as mining and logging; enforcing restitution orders promptly; proactively screening vulnerable populations, including migrants, for signs of trafficking; and ensuring that convicted traffickers and any complicit officials face adequate penalties.

Walrond said Georgetown ‘is firmly committed to addressing these recommendations with urgency, deploying advanced policies, rigorous monitoring, and strengthened partnerships to disrupt trafficking networks and safeguard victims’.

West Indies stand in T20I captain, Akeal Hosein has urged fans not to lose hope in the regional team following their shocking 2-1 loss to Nepal in their just concluded T20I series.

His plea came after the sixth-ranked West Indies demolished Nepal by 10 wickets in the third and final T20I on Tuesday to earn a consolation win after they were thoroughly outplayed by their 18th-ranked opponents in the first two matches.

Hosein, who captained the side in the absence of regular skipper Shai Hope, acknowledged that while their supporters had all rights to be discouraged after the loss, he said the team would get its act together leading up to the 2026 Men’s T20 World Cup, slated to bowl off in early February’I mean we owe everything to them. We’ve been disappointing them for a while now and hopefully we can sort of give them a positive message with such a clinical performance.

‘But as I’ve said in the past, we’ve really disappointed them and hopefully we can make that turn leading up to the World Cup,’ Hosein said.

Despite the embarrassing series loss, Hosein said he was very impressed with the way in which the Windies outplayed Nepal in the final T20I.

He also gave Nepal credit for preparing pitches which suited their strengths in the opening two matches of the series.

‘I’m happy to see them come out and give that sort of performance, the last game in the end of the series, losing two games up front, I think it was an excellent effort and clinical as well.

‘But I thought Nepal ticked all the boxes in this series. They batted well, they bowled well, and they fielded well and if I can go one step further, in winning a series I believe you have to do everything possible in your power, especially when it’s your home series,’ Hosein said.

‘And if you can look over the past three games, the first two games were definitely their home conditions, a surface that they are accustomed to, it was slow and low. And if you can see, once they secured that series, they came and they played on a green top, probably for experience or to get accustomed and it was a totally different match.

‘So, kudos to them, they used their home advantage pretty well and that’s why they are the winners here today,’ he added.

Health authorities from across the Americas, including the Caribbean, Wednesday approved a new 2025-2030 Action Plan for the Prevention and Control of Noncommunicable Diseases (NCDs) marking a critical step toward addressing the leading cause of death and disability in the region.

The initiative, approved at the ongoing 62nd Directing Council of the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO), aims to accelerate the implementation of measures to reduce the burden of NCDs and improve the quality of life for millions of people affected by cardiovascular diseases, cancer, diabetes, and chronic respiratory diseases-through the strengthening of primary health care systems.

‘The adoption of this plan is a key step toward transforming how we tackle NCDs in the Americas,’ said Dr. Anselm Hennis, Director of PAHO’s Department of Noncommunicable Diseases and Mental Health.

‘Its implementation will enable us to move toward more resilient health systems that are centered on people and their communities.’

The plan proposes three strategic lines of action, namely reducing NCD risk factors, integrating NCD management into primary health care and strengthening surveillance systems.

PAHO said that these lines of action are designed to reverse a concerning trend where NCDs account for an estimated six million deaths annually in the region, with nearly 40 per cent of those deaths occurring prematurely, before the age of 70.

The UN health agency said that NCDs affect approximately 240 million people in the Americas and that while the last decade has seen progress in reducing the number of tobacco users, tobacco use remains a major risk factor, alongside harmful alcohol consumption, poor diet, physical inactivity, and obesity.

‘For example, over 35 per cent of adults are physically inactive, and one in three adults lives with obesity. Access to diagnosis and treatment also remains limited: only 36 per cent of people with hypertension have their blood pressure under control, and more than 40 million people with diabetes lack access to adequate treatment.’

PAHO said that the action plan emphasises the need for a whole-of-government and whole-of-society approach, and highlights key measures such as fiscal policies to reduce the consumption of tobacco, alcohol, and sugar-sweetened beverages, front-of-package warning labels on ultra-processed foods and restrictions on marketing as well as integration of NCD prevention and treatment into primary care to improve diagnosis, treatment, and control rates.

In addition the human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccination and screening for early detection of cervical cancer and the use of digital solutions and innovative tools to strengthen data surveillance, improve monitoring, and support evidence-based policymaking are among the key highlights.

‘Progress under the action plan will be monitored through biennial review mechanisms, with a midterm review in 2028 and a final report in 2031. PAHO will also support countries in mobilizing resources to implement priority actions.

‘Through this plan, countries of the Americas reaffirm their commitment to public health and sustainable development, at a critical time to reduce the burden of NCDs in the region,’ PAHO added.

United States authorities have concluded a long-term investigation with the unsealing of an indictment in the District of South Carolina charging two foreign nationals, including a Guyanese national, with conspiring to illegally divert US funded global health commodities.

The authorities said that Eric Ndungu Mwangi, 40, a Kenyan national, and Davendra Rampersaud, 42, a Guyanese national, and their associated businesses were charged in a 2021 superseding indictment brought by a federal grand jury in the District of South Carolina. They say the superseding indictment was originally filed under seal to protect the ongoing investigation.

The investigation, led by the Office of the Inspector General for the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), focused on the approximately US$650 million USAID-funded KEMSA Medical Commodities Programme (MCP).

The purpose of KEMSA MCP was to establish and operate a safe, secure, reliable, and sustainable supply chain management system for HIV/AIDS commodities needed to provide care and treatment of persons with HIV/AIDS in Kenya, and to support the warehousing and distribution of select family planning, nutrition, and malaria commodities.

Beginning in 2014, Mwangi and his company, Linear Diagnostics (LD), systematically stole HIV test kits and other commodities intended for KEMSA. The stolen goods found a buyer in Rampersaud and his Guyanese company, Caribbean Medical Supplies, Inc. (CMS).

In 2015, Rampersaud fraudulently secured a ‘Letter of Authority’ to operate as an authorized distributor, allowing him to secure a lucrative, sole-source contract with the Guyana Ministry of Health for the products he was acquiring illegally.

Between 2015 and 2019, Rampersaud paid Mwangi over US$177,000 for the diverted medical supplies, including the stolen, USAID-funded HIV test kits meant for Kenya. Rampersaud then profited again by selling these stolen health commodities to the Guyanese government. He and his company also acquired and sold test kits stolen from another separate USAID programme.

‘This was an incredibly complicated investigation, spanning years and an ocean,’ said U.S. Attorney Bryan Stirling for the District of South Carolina, adding ‘these defendants jeopardized a vital public health mission and caused a significant loss to the American taxpayers’.

In February 2021, Kenyan authorities arrested Mwangi on charges relating to theft and fraud. He is currently awaiting trial in Kenya. On the American charges, Mwangi faces up to 20 years on various counts, fines, and a term of supervised release.

In January 2023, Rampersaud was arrested on charges arising out of the superseding indictment when he flew into Miami in the United States during a flight layover, while attempting to travel back to Guyana.

He was transported to Charleston, South Carolina, and pleaded guilty to conspiracy and to stealing or converting health commodities that USAID paid for as part of a health care benefit. He was sentenced by United States District Judge Richard M. Gergel and received credit for time served and was additionally sentenced to three years of supervised release and ordered to pay an US$84,000 fine.

The Investment Migration Agency (IMA) says a significant number of foreign nationals granted citizenship of Grenada under the Citizenship by Investment (CBI) progrmme during the second quarter of this year, has come from the United States.

Data released by the IMA said that American accounted for 12 per cent of the 402 people approved as new citizens followed by persons from China and Nigeria, each accounting for 10 per cent.

The figures show that during the first three months of this year, one per cent of the 632 applicants approved for new citizenship were US nationals, making it the first time that Nigeria and China were not the top ranked countries.

The IMA said that other nationalities approved as citizens for the period came from Pakistan, the United Kingdom, The Philippines; Uganda, Uzbekistan, Ukraine, Egypt, France, Germany, India, Kuwait, Lebanon, Republic Of Congo, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, Spain, Syria, Turkey, Bangladesh, Vietnam, Zambia, Democratic Republic of the Congo and Haiti.

As of the end of the second quarter of 2025, a total of 893 new citizens were approved through the IMA bringing a total of EC$103.2 million (One EC dollar=US$0.37 cents) according to the June 2025 monthly fiscal report from the Ministry of Finance.

IMA chief executive officer, Thomas Anthony, in August announced that Grenada will be focusing on marketing the CBI programme to Africa and that a delegation would be visiting West Africa in October this year.

‘We have been exploring more African countries, more recently we were in Kenya in collaboration with the Nairobi Chamber of Commerce and at that event we have more than 100 individuals attending and we believe that we will see some fruit from that event,’ said Anthony.

Under the CBI programme, foreign investors are granted citizenship of Grenada in return for making a substantial investment in the socio-economic development of the country.

Former prime minister Stuart Young Wednesday described as an ‘irony’ the announcement by the United States government that it would support the Trinidad and Tobago government’s Dragon gas proposal with Venezuela as Washington acknowledge the importance of energy security to the twin island republic.

A statement issued following talks between Prime Minister Kamla Persad Bissessar and United States Secretary of State, Marco Rubio, on Tuesday said that Washington had ‘outlined US support for the government’s Dragon gas proposal and steps to ensure it will not provide significant benefit to the Maduro regime’.

But speaking at a news conference here, Young, who had also served as minister of energy in two previous People’s National Movement (PNM) administrations, recalled the announcement by Prime Minister Persad Bissessar, soon after being sworn into office that the Dragon gas deal was dead.

He said ‘she announced to the world at large that Dragon was dead with glee and that they would pursue gas in Grenada, Guyana, Suriname and .we fid ourselves right back here today’.

He said it was the PNM administration that did the hard work and the leg work from 2016.with resect to the pursuit of the Dragon gas.and it is obvious that the government will mislead you and the government will be akin to snake oil salesmen.

‘The Dragon gas field is completely within the maritime borders of Venezuela. The Dragon gas field is completely owned by the people of Venezuela and it is the PNM government that negotiated through very difficult and trying times and managed in December 2023 .to obtain a 30 years exploration, production and export of gas from the Dragon field to Trinidad and Tobago waters’.

Young told reporters that the licence, which was published by the Venezuelan government, outlined the terms for the 30 year licence.

‘the first point is that the Dragon gas is owned by Venezuela and the field is completely situated in Venezuela and they have the rights to the gas,’ Young said adding that the development between Rubio and Persad Bissessar ‘is absolutely no different to the conversations that he had with me and the PNM administration when I was prime minister’.

Young said that during their talks in Jamaica earlier this year, ‘we had good conversations’ and after that the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) did cancel the licences that existed for Dragon gas .

In April, the United States government revoked the OFAC license granted to Trinidad and Tobago to allow Shell, the National Gas Company (NGC), and contractors to explore, produce, and export natural gas from the Venezuelan Dragon Gas Field.

The license was valid until October 31, 2025, and enabled Trinidad and Tobago to pay for gas in various currencies and through humanitarian measures. On December 21, 2023, Trinidad and Tobago also secured a 30-year exploration and production license from the government of Venezuela for the Dragon gas field.

Washington had also revoked the Cocuina-Manakin license granted to Port of Spain on May 31, 2024.

Port of Spain had been planning to request an extension from Washington for a license granted to Shell and the NGC to develop the Dragon gas project in Venezuela.

The license, issued in early 2023, allows the companies to plan the project. The project aims to supply gas to Trinidad by 2027. The Dragon Field is located in Venezuelan waters near the maritime border with Trinidad.

Young said following the revocation of the licence, Rubio held talks with him and in a statement made it clear ‘he will work with us on our energy security and our energy deals and in the world of diplomacy and diplomatic language that is what we were talking about’.

Young said that the present government has been making pre-mature statements ‘that they have obtained something is completely false.

‘We had obtained an initial OFAC licence in January 2023 where they spelt out the terms of that they would allow and in that licence they had said you could not pay Venezuela and the people of Venezuela in fiat currency, it had to be in kind.’

He said it would be interesting to see what the government does now because while the FAC licence had been given to the previous administration, he had to make several trips to Caracas to meet with the Venezuelan authorities and their technocrats ‘to negotiate the terms upon which they will be prepared for the Dragon gas to be sold to Trinidad and Tobago and they would not do it for in kind.

‘Look at the language very carefully from Secretary Rubio’s office that talks about what they are prepared to look at. Secondly, you now have to go through applying to OFAC an waiting on the terms of the licence and it is only then you will know the landscape and playing field that you can now go to Venezuela and attempt to negotiate’.

Young said that it is no hidden secret of the ‘position and stance of this government and in particular the voice of the prime minister towards our closest neighbour and the government of Venezuela and .the vice president of Venezuela is also the minister of Energy and the person in charge of these resources.’

Last month, Prime Minister Persad Bissessar told her junior minister, Phillip Alexander, that he was ‘totally out of line’ after he became embroiled in a war of words with the Venezuelan Vice President, Delcy Rodríguez.

Alexander, the Minister in the Ministry of Housing, had earlier suggested that India might ‘nuke’ Venezuela to protect the Caribbean island after Port of Spain publicly endorsed the move by President Donald Trump to send military warships into the Caribbean Sea with the intent of preventing drug dealers from illegally carrying out their trade. .

But in a Facebook post, Rodríguez mocked Alexander’s remarks, saying, ‘the only nuclear bomb dropped was into the brain of this official’s newly-taken government.’ urging Trinidad and Tobago to focus on its own people and to distance itself from the Washington’s alleged plans to exploit Venezuela’s resources..

Young said that the current minister of Energy here, Dr. Roodal Moonil, had when in opposition written to the United States urging Washington to impose sanctions on then prime minister Dr. Keith Rowley and himself for meeting with the Venezuelan vice president to negotiate the oil deal.

Young said that while the PNM would always welcome any initiative that would benefit Trinidad and Tobago ‘we will not stand by quietly whilst this government continues in its attempts to mislead the population of Trinidad and Tobago.

‘They have a long road ahead of them and on this occasion.it is three hands that have to clap not two and it is the same Delcy Rodriquez that every week I went to Parliament I had to be hearing from them.about our interactions with the Vice President of Venezuela’.

Young urged Trinidad and Tobago not to be duped by ‘snake oil salesmen .and challenge the prime minister, challenge minister Moonilal and show us the OFAC licence that you receive, because it is literally a licence you receive with the terms and conditions that set out the parameters upon which you can negotiate and that is the starting document.

‘So please Trinidad and Tobago do not allow them to fool you and ask yourself of the irony of coming back straight to Dragon which we had been saying all along.’